If only
by DarkERB
Summary: Sometimes, it's the happiest people who suffer. And sometimes, we're too late to notice...


**It's been a while, hasn't it? Sorry about that. I was just a little busy recently. Anyway, here's another tragic piece for you! Once again, I don't own any of K-ON!'s characters. Enjoy the story, hopefully!**

 **Reviews are appreciated. Requests just as much so**

* * *

If only they had noticed the signs…

Azusa did not quite remember when it all started, but she knew it was at least half a year ago.

It was near the end of her first year when she noticed something slightly off with Yui. She was walking towards the clubroom when she heard something in the washroom. Curious, she poked her head inside, only to discover Yui looking at herself in the mirror with a faraway look in her eyes. Slightly troubled, she walked to her side and waved her palm in front of her face, which successfully attracted her attention.

"What are you doing, Yui-senpai? Are you okay?" asked Azusa concernedly. Yui turned to look at her. For half a second, she thought Yui had a despairing look on her face, but it vanished as soon as she turned to face her, so she thought it must have been her imagination. Yui still had plenty of life in her movements and she could not discern anything off about her actions at that time.

"Azu-nyan!" Yui's face lit up. She tried to jump onto Azusa and hug her, as usual, which Azusa skillfully dodged. "I'm fine! I was just trying to figure out how my reflection eats!" Azusa's eyebrow twitched at that statement. She sighed. She was not really sure what to expect out of Yui, with her air-headedness and all, but that statement was far-fetched even for Yui.

"Your reflection isn't real. It doesn't need food, so it doesn't eat" explained Azusa, unsure whether or not to stare at her for that question, or laugh at the ridiculousness of it.

"It doesn't?! What a miserable life!" exclaimed Yui, with shock displayed on her face. She blinked. Did Yui seriously think otherwise?

Sighing again, she pulled her away from the mirror exasperatedly. "We need to head to the clubroom now. The rest of them are waiting. Come on. We shouldn't be late." Leading the way towards the clubroom, she made sure Yui actually left the washroom before she dared to turn away. Knowing her, she would probably go back and study her reflection's eating habits again and get distracted. When she did so, however, she noticed a strange expression appear on Yui's face, once again. She did not take heed of it however, simply dismissing it as a figment of her imagination.

She had never regretted something she had done as much as that.

* * *

She remembered Mio telling her a strange story about Yui several months ago, approximately a week after that event.

Mio was walking down the street, browsing for ingredients to buy for dinner. She had just made up her mind of what to buy when she saw Yui. Pleasantly surprised, she slowly approached her when she noticed a crestfallen expression on her face. Curious and worried, she decided to call out to her.

"Yui! Good evening!" said Mio, cheerily. Yui turned and, noticing her presence, her sullen look dissipated immediately.

"Mio! What are you doing here?" Yui did not break character, her usual liveliness still evident as she replied.

"I'm just buying dinner. Care to join me later?" asked Mio. Yui smiled but shook her head.

"I'd love too, but my parents had just returned home, so we're going to eat out together. Sorry," answered Yui regretfully, apparently unhappy she had to miss out on food with a fellow friend of hers.

Mio smiled back at her and shook her head, "It's fine. By the way, what are you doing here? Surely if you're also buying dinner, Ui'd be the one out and about?" questioned Mio teasingly.

At that question, something strange happened. Yui's entire body went rigid and her expression stiffened. However, this only occurred for less than a second, and before Mio could blink, Yui returned to normal, as if nothing had happened. Mio could not be certain what had happened, so she merely shelved it at the back of her mind, dismissing it as a trick of light. After all, Yui replied almost instantaneously, "I'm just bringing Giita for service! I'm heading home now."

Mio checked the time on her cellphone. Seeing it was already getting close to seven and she had not bought her dinner yet, she bid Yui farewell and entered the store for her purchases. Inside, she saw Yui leaving the area, pacing rapidly. Turning away from the window, she barely missed seeing Yui look back before taking a sharp turn into an alleyway.

She wished Mio had noticed Giita was not, in fact, slung on Yui's back, or the fact that Ui mentioned their parents were not due home for another month.

* * *

Ritsu was the third, a few months after their third year had begun.

Being the forgetful person she was, she had only realized that their homework due the next day was still left in her drawer after club. Mio had already left, so she could not just copy the questions from her, nor the answers. Since she was the last person to leave that day, she locked the clubroom behind her and rushed back to class to grab it. It was already rather late, almost six, but a surprise was still left in store for her.

When she arrived there, she saw Yui facedown on the table, her bag hanging loosely from behind her. Thinking it strange, Ritsu shook her slowly, in case Yui had merely fallen asleep. At the first touch, however, Yui jolted upright, and faced Ritsu. She was rather shocked to see Yui teary-eyed, her gaze unfocused, her lip bleeding. Alarmed, she questioned Yui about her current state.

Upon recognizing Ritsu, her gaze focused and Yui just laughed, saying, "I just kicked the table with my toe. It really hurt, you know!" Yui pouted slightly before continuing her explanation, "After kicking it, I fell facedown onto the table, and I was just too lazy to get up. Don't you just hate it when that happens?" She made a face at Ritsu, who nodded in acquiescence, agreeing with her statement.

"I know, right? It's almost as bad as that time when Mugi forgot to bring sweets to club!" Yui nodded her head vigorously, jumping up and down, her long sleeves bouncing with her. Only due to this did Ritsu realize Yui was wearing a sweater, which was probably very uncomfortable in the heat of summer. Noticing the target of Ritsu's scrutiny, Yui pulled at her sleeves and began to explain.

"I was wearing this at club, and I was too lazy to take it off," said Yui, answering her unasked question.

Ritsu was still not completely satisfied, however, "Why not you remove it here?"

Yui looked at her in half-awe, "Maybe I should! I never thought of that! By the way," said Yui suddenly, "why are you here?"

Cursing under her breath, Ritsu remembered the reason she went there in the first place. Swiping her book from under the drawer, she quickly waved goodbye to Yui, who waved back, and ran home, hoping to finish the incomplete homework before dinner. In her hurry, Ritsu did not realize that Yui was not wearing a sweater during practice, and she had forgotten to ask the reason Yui did not go home immediately after club.

This was all told to _Houkago Tea-Time_ during one of their club sessions, with Azusa still not piecing these three clues together.

* * *

Mugi received the last piece of the puzzle several weeks ago.

She was on the way back from the clubroom to the front of the school when she heard a noise coming from an empty room. She was startled, as most of the other students should have left for home already, and the room itself was an unused clubroom where no one should be. Curious, she poked her head inside the clubroom to see what was going on.

From the angle she was looking in to the room, she could not see nor hear much, but she caught a glimpse of several girls from the school. They were third years, from the colour of their ribbons, but the girl in the centre caught her attention. It was Yui, but something was off about her. She did not seem to have her normal energetic aura, and she seemed to have a smaller presence then normal. The other girls seemed to be towering over her, laughing about something.

Mugi did not quite understand what was going on, but decided it was probably Yui's private business. Not wanting to disturb her, she chose to wait for her next to her locker. After all, since she had not left yet, they could probably walk home together, something she had yet to do with Yui. After approximately seven minutes of waiting, she caught sight of Yui coming towards her locker flightily.

"Yui!" Mugi called out. Yui jumped slightly and turned to face her, smiling weakly. Mugi beamed at her, but her smile faded marginally when she saw several markings on her face and arms. Yui looked at her with a smile plastered over her face.

"Hi, Mugi! What are you still doing here?" Yui questioned, a little worry seeping into her voice.

"I was hoping we could walk home together!" exclaimed Mugi excitedly, excitement shining out of her eyes like a little girl on Christmas.

Disregarding the fact they did not live in the same direction, Yui shook her head and accepted her proposal. Grabbing their things from their respective lockers, they made their way out of the school. Mugi noticed Yui putting on her sweater, which had pretty much been her trademark those past few months, before they left towards Yui's home. Curious about those marks, she questioned Yui about them.

"How did you get those marks, Yui? Did it have anything to do with those girls?"

Yui started. "You saw us?" asked Yui rhetorically, with trepidation. Mugi nodded. "Not really…we were just trying on some makeup. We were trying to copy those famous celebrities, you know?" she answered. Mugi nodded her head, agreeing with her, even if she did seem a tad bit unconvincing. Looking at her, Mugi did not think that she looked remote close to any celebrity figure at all, but chose to remain silent.

It did not take long for them to be in the vicinity of Yui's household. A couple houses from it, Mugi decided to bid her farewell and call someone to pick her up. She really enjoyed their time together. It was the first time she and Yui had ever been together alone, even though she seemed a little stiff most of the time. While awaiting her pickup, she spotted Yui putting a bandage on her face before entering her house, but assumed she did not want to be seem which such a poorly done makeup job.

If only Mugi told Azusa this earlier...the most important piece…the most crucial evidence…everything would have been so much better...

* * *

It was almost five months after the start of the year.

Azusa was having an exceptionally normal day. Class had just finished, so she was making her way towards the clubroom. She had already left her guitar there beforehand, so she walked there with her hands in her pockets, secretly hoping Mugi had brought some tasty sweets. However, something felt off, and her gut told her to head towards the back of the school. She had no logical reason to, of course, but over time she had learnt to trust her instincts. Still slightly apprehensive, however, she made her way there.

On the way there, she saw Sawako-sensei, also heading in the same direction. Azusa was surprised, as normally she would have no reason to be there, but nonetheless greeted her, "Sensei! What are you doing here?"

Said teacher, who had just noticed her, waved, "Azusa! I was just asked to returning some of the gardening equipment. I'd already done it, so I was going to return to the clubroom, but something felt wrong, so I headed in this direction instead."

"You too, sensei?" Azusa knew Sawako-sensei had an especially acute sixth sense, of sorts, able to detect Mugi's sweets and potential cosplay targets from miles away. Theoretically, it was possible it would overlap with danger as well. Knowing she had a teacher with her made her feel a little better. Before she could reply, however, the other club members appeared in her field of vision.

"Sensei," Ritsu called out, "are you and Azusa heading to the back of the school too?" Mio and Mugi nodded to us in acknowledgement, while Sawako-sensei nodded to her in acquiescence. Ritsu smiled again. "Brilliant! Let's head there together!"

The rest of them shared a look. If all of them had a foreboding feeling, it was probably not a coincidence. Together, they made our way towards our destination. The walk was rather silent, with only Ritsu's humming breaking it. Nothing much happened on the way either, asides from the surprising amount of third years making their way past us but a sense of dread washed over Azusa nevertheless. When she finally turned the final corner, however, she froze. Azusa could not move an inch, staring at the scene in front of her.

Yui's broken and battered body laid there, blood oozing onto the floor.

* * *

When Azusa returned to my senses, she was laying on the sofa of the clubroom. Groaning, she sat up, the image of what had happened still burned into her mind. The rest of the club members were around the clubroom, all looking different shades of pale. Apparently, Sawako-sensei had immediately called for an ambulance to pick her up and informed the school authorities about it already. She was brought to the clubroom by the other members, for which she was immensely grateful.

The principal had already managed to identify some of the culprits. One of them, a third-year girl confessed out of guilt to bodily harming Yui, as well as being part of the group who had been bullying her for the greater part of three years. They were all shocked to hear that. _How could anybody have the heart to bully Yui?_ Yet, it was true. Said girl had mentioned that the group had felt jealous of Yui, who had, to them, got to where she was then without any effort whatsoever. It took all of their willpower to not go up and beat some of the identified members to a pulp.

Afterwards, they wished to go visit Yui, but they had to do the most difficult job first: informing Ui. Hesitantly, they shuffled in front of the door. Before they could even bring themselves to knock, the door opened on its own. Ui's face popped out; her eyes puffy from crying; her face miserable. She invited us in as usual, but we politely declined. Instead, we offered to bring her along to visit Yui immediately, which she gratefully agreed to. Most likely the school management had already informed Yui's parents, who in turn informed Ui.

The journey to the hospital was tense. The mood was very solemn, and nobody was willing to break the awkward silence around them. Once they reached the hospital, they questioned around for Yui's condition. A doctor there was kind enough to give them the general run-down: Yui currently was in the ICU. She had multiple fractures and bruises, as well as possible cerebral damage. Upon seeing their horrified expressions however, he quickly consoled us, telling us her condition was rather stable as of the moment.

Soon after, the door to the ICU ward opened. Peeking in, Azusa saw Yui's battered body once again. Her state still made her rather queasy, and she would be very astounded if the culprits were not expelled. The doctor who had just left the room spotted us and, recognizing Ui as her relative, informed her about Yui's condition.

"Currently," he said, "your sister is stable." They all let out a sigh of relief.

"However," he continued, "there might be a few problems…"

"Like what?" asked Ui, anxiously. The doctor rubbed his head.

"She is in a coma." They all gasped. "We don't know when or if she will wake, and even if she does, she might have suffered brain damage. If she does wake, she might not ever be the same again…"

Azusa looked at Yui once again. Seeing her in such a pitiful state, and not knowing if she would be all right was too much for her. Thanking the doctor for his time, they left the hospital, not wishing to disturb them from their work any longer. They split up, making their way to their respective homes. Azusa accompanied Ui partway back, before bidding her farewell at a crossroads.

"Ah," said Azusa weakly, and suddenly, "It looks like it's going to rain…"

Ui looked at her puzzled. "No, I don't think so…" she said, confused, her voice still hoarse from crying. She began to walk towards her home. Azusa stared at her as she departed.

"No," whispered Azusa, tears beginning to fall, "It's raining all right…"

* * *

It was a few days after the incident, and class had just finished.

Azusa stood outside the clubroom, reluctant to enter. She knew the others were already inside, probably, but she could not here the usual clatter of teacups nor the sound of the band practising. She paced in front of the clubroom for several moments, wondering if she should take the day off, but ultimately decided against it. Hovering her hand over the doorknob, she took a shaky breath before creaking open the door.

The inside was not a pretty sight. Ritsu was fiddling with her drumsticks, but she lacked her usual energy; her head on the table, not even looking at the cake Mugi had served in front of her. Mio was similarly in a depressed mood, everything else in the room not being paid attention too. Azusa would bet her guitar that if she were to attempt to scare her now, she would not even bad an eyelid. Mugi was looking unfocusedly around. The tea set still untouched. Overall, there was a very, very disheartening atmosphere.

Sawako-sensei was not there, she noticed. She was probably dealing with the latest mess they were involved in. In her place was Nodoka. She was taking small bites out of the cake Mugi served, and acknowledged her appearance with a slight nod, but was obviously very distracted. Ui was also among the present company. She was lying on the sofa, with a desolate look on her face.

Azusa sat in one of the other empty seats available. She helped herself to a slice of cake, not that the others would notice. The only sounds echoing in the clubroom were Ritsu's drumsticks clacking together and Nodoka and Azusa eating, but she was reluctant to break the silence. Nobody else looked to be in the mood for conversation, anyway. Forlornly, she reminisced the events that had led to this happening.

 _Houkago Tea-Time_ without Yui.

If only they had noticed the signs…


End file.
